We did, and wound up buying three properties (our own SFH, a second SFH nearby, and a 4-plex) in a span of six months.

Jesse- The land by itself is at most worth $40K, comps (lots) nearby on an off street sold for $36K and no it is not in any condition for any type of use.

That could even effect the value of your unit and other houses nearby - especially if someone sets up a meth lab or grow house.

While located near Martinsburg, my primary geographic focus has been in nearby Washington County (Hagerstown/Williamsport), Frederick County and Montgomery County, Maryland.At one point I was primarily interested in townhouses.

If the seller is using the county assessed value then guessing at a price its no wonder its been up for so long, they are not accurate.Get on Zillow, realtor.com, eappraisal, redfin (use the whats my house worth tool) to get a general ballpark of what homes have sold for near by and what these websites think the home is worth.

I always look up the address of the property on HCAD.org (Harris county) or similar sites for nearby counties.  

I live nearby and certainly appreciate your dilemma. 

There seem to be couple of good deals in Baltimore but my concern is that the schools nearby are rated poorly by Zillow and that ultimately affects my future tenants. 

-Joining a local real-estate club where I can network with people nearby and hopefully find a mentor. 

In Indianapolis, the Bates-Hendricks neighborhood has been receiving increasing attention as prices in nearby neighborhoods such as Fletcher Place and Fountain Square have increased appreciably.